Super Fighting Tokyo.

Shiramu Cheng: "..."

Shiraki Cheng: "The literal meaning, right...?"

He didn't really understand it; he just had that feeling at the time and said it offhand.

"After all, that's the truth!"

"...That's true."

Rito sipped his soda, leaning against the wall and sighing, "Baki Hanma is really amazing. From any angle, he's unbelievably powerful..."

"If I were on the field, I'd probably lose just as badly as Ali Jr., right?"

"It's not just Baki, but many other skilled fighters as well. I can gradually feel the huge gap between me and them."

At this point, Li Ren changed the subject and laughed self-deprecatingly:

"But strangely enough, even though I know this, I always feel that I won't refuse—even if I get beaten down, I'd be happy to."

"Is this what you call third-rate enthusiasm? Doesn't it make him look like a fool who overestimates himself? Haha..."

Li Ren scratched his head with a wry smile.

Upon hearing this, Wu Fengshui waved his hand, drank his canned juice, tilted his head to the side, and blinked his black-and-white eyes.

"A thirst for battle, a thirst for strength, a thirst to explore 'what true strength is'—"

The girl looked at Bai Mucheng and grinned, showing her teeth.

"There are far more fools like this than just one!"

Seeing Shiramu Cheng's expression, and noticing that he was smiling leisurely and even squinting his eyes with happiness, the girl couldn't help but feel curious.

She poked Shiramu Cheng's waist. "Hey? What are you thinking about?"

"..."

Shiraki admitted that he had thought about it seriously for a moment, "Similar to Baki, doing something difficult with the determination to die—or something like that?"

Chapter 425 The Purity of "Now"

"Difficult things?"

Wu Fengshui blinked his black-and-white eyes, looking somewhat puzzled. "Bai Muqin, do you feel relaxed lately?"

"Mmm~~~~~"

Bai Mucheng crossed his arms, looking troubled and conflicted, as if he were genuinely considering this problem.

Upon seeing this, Wu Fengshui was immediately displeased.

She knew very well that Bai Mucheng was not the kind of person who underestimated his opponents.

Facing Okubo, Yorozuka Sapain, Honoka, even Ali Jr., and so on... he would never utter the word "easy".

Enjoy every battle to the very end—it's never easy.

Therefore, Bai Mucheng is doing this on purpose, most likely to put on a show for Wu Fengshui.

"You little rascal, you're really trying to mess with me!"

Veins bulged around Wu Fengshui's eyes, his "liberation" was 28% activated, he grabbed Bai Mucheng's neck with one hand and kicked him in the buttocks with his other leg.

"Aha—!"

Shiramu Cheng grinned, spilling his soda, but he quite enjoyed the playful banter.

"..."

Beside him, Rito, taking advantage of his height, habitually ruffled Ayaka's hair with his large hand, saying, "Shiraki-kun really has a good relationship with Feng Shui!"

Arisa's hair was tangled from being rubbed, and she complained angrily, "If Razor's Edge causes hair loss, I'll have Maruk beat you up."

"No way! This is a scalp massage!"

Rito looked bitter and took a swig of soda. "Speaking of which, Shiraki-kun is really joking. He must be having the hardest time lately, right?"

"……Do not."

To everyone's surprise, Arisa shook her head and denied it, saying, "Compared to his previous vacation in 'Kure no Sato,' my brother has indeed been much more relaxed lately."

The person was puzzled, "What's so difficult about taking a vacation?"

"..."

Since it was just casual conversation, Wu Fengshui put his arm around Bai Mucheng's neck and started talking about the grand "summer festival" in Wuzhili.

From the initial arrival at Kure no Sato, to the secret intrusion of TEPCO, and finally to the final battle between Shiraki Sei and Wu Raian.

As Li Ren listened, he began to sense that something was amiss.

"Wait, this frequency of battles..."

He counted on his fingers and said:

"Leaving aside those lowly henchmen, there's also Master Shibukawa, the 'wrestler' Hose Kanzaki, the Sakukai-o, Sekibayashi Jun, and finally Wu Lei'an..."

"If you calculate it that way, it's almost every day—morning, noon, and night—that's all they do!"

"What a Spartan vacation this is!"

"..."

Upon hearing Rito's words, Shiraki Sei, who was playfully fighting with the girl, suddenly thought of an interesting question.

He asked with a smile, "If it were Rito, nicknamed 'Razor's Edge,' you would participate in such a summer festival?"

Rito was taken aback. "Huh? Is this a 'problem'?"

He thought about it seriously, and finally pursed his lips and said, "Whether I participate or not... I definitely still want to participate! Although I probably won't have the chance..."

"I might not even survive the first battle."

Rito sighed, "But as for the answer—yes, I will participate. Even if I probably get beaten up and suffer terribly, I want to give it a try."

Bai Mucheng understood.

It should be said that Rito's talent is not only "finger strength", but also his desire to "become stronger" and his grasp of the "present".

That's why, in the "Kengan Suicide Match" that never happened, Rito was recognized by Kuroki after losing to the "Demon Spear" Gensai Kuroki.

After much persistent persuasion, Rito finally became Kuroki Gensai's disciple.

"..."

Bai Mucheng broke free from Wu Fengshui's arm, took a sip of his drink, and suddenly sighed softly:

"Struggle can easily lead to despair."

"The path to enlightenment is always painful."

"—We need to have this kind of understanding."

He leaned against the wall.

“Ali Jr. said he was prepared to kill.”

"But that only makes you look dangerous—it's just acting."

"This was not intentional; Ali Jr. was not even aware of it, but it was essentially just a facade."

Shiraki thought for a moment.

"In other words, Ali Jr. doesn't really intend to kill anyone, but rather to be prepared for even the 'decision' to be made—that level is not enough."

"A person who is prepared to die will never be able to truly achieve victory or defeat in his life, nor will he have the 'Tao' (the Way)."

"Always maintain an attitude of 'preparation and reservation,' and take action on the 'now' in the appropriate place to postpone your 'answer'."

"The final result will dilute the 'present'."

Bai Mucheng finished his drink, crushed the aluminum can, and threw it into the nearby trash can.

His body was filled with surging fighting spirit.

It's both an explanation to others and a summary for myself.

"You have to give your life for the present moment—you have to go to that extent for the purity to be sufficient!"

"..."

Bai Mucheng's words echoed in everyone's ears.

Immediately afterwards—

Pfft!

A muffled thud suddenly came from around the corner of the corridor in the distance.

Attracted by the sound, the crowd approached and secretly hid around the corner to observe, discovering that it was Ali and his son.

At this moment, before Ali had even changed out of his competition uniform or returned to the locker room, he knelt down on the ground, tears streaming down his face, and wept bitterly.

That muffled thud was the sound of him kneeling down.

"Waaah...waaah..."

Little Ali sobbed.

Seeing this, Old Ali paused for a moment, then decided that it was not appropriate for him to speak, so he slowly walked away.

Turn the corner and pass by Bai Mucheng.

He must have overheard the discussion and heard Shiraki Cheng's opinion.

Old Ali raised his great hand, patted Bai Mucheng on the shoulder, and said softly, "...You're right."

"..."

After Old Ali left, Little Ali continued to kneel on the ground and weep bitterly, his whole body trembling.

That was the most straightforward way to vent emotions!